Israel's security cabinet approved harsh retaliatory measures to Sunday's launching of Kassam-2 rockets into Israel. No details of the cabinet decision were made public, but security officials believe the Palestinians' use of the rockets changed the rules of the game, and will lead to Israeli military actions as yet unseen in the conflict.

IAF jets and helicopters struck Palestinian security facilities in the Gaza Strip early Monday afternoon, in the third wave of Israeli air strikes there in less than a day. Palestinian sources reported that two F-16s fired at least six missiles at the Force 17 headquarters in Gaza City, a jail and the Governor's building, next to PA Chairman Yasser Arafat's offices. Electricity in several neighborhoods was cut off and Palestinians reported 25 people injured, six seriously.

Israeli troops and armored units staged a pre-dawn raid Monday into Nablus and the Balata refugee camp to the east of the city. It was the IDF's second consecutive day of military action in Nablus. The purpose of the operation was reported to be an attempt to capture Kassam rocket infrastructure, as well as the arrest of an unnamed senior terrorist operative. The mission did not achieve its objectives, ynet reported, and it was unclear whether it was directly connected to the cabinet decision.

Palestinian sources said that Israeli troops, backed by five tanks, armored vehicles and helicopters, entered Nablus from the east and advanced towards the Palestinian Authority headquarters in the city center. During the course of the operation, Palestinians opened fire on the IDF troops, but no casualties were reported.

An IDF spokesman said the troops operated in the southeastern sections of Nablus to "prevent further attacks" similar to the many terrorist attacks that had originated in the city recently, but gave no further details. The IDF forces reportedly withdrew from Nablus at the end of the operation, but maintained its closure on the city.

On Sunday night, in response to the terrorist shooting attack in Beer Sheva, in which two female soldiers were killed, and the launching of the Kassam-2 rockets, Israeli Air Force F-16 jets struck the Gaza City headquarters of Force 17, the elite militia under the direct command of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. The jets reportedly circled overhead, allowing Palestinian security forces time to evacuate the building, before they fired missiles. Some twenty Palestinians were reported injured, most of them lightly from shattering glass fragments. Two members of a UNESCO office stationed in Gaza were among the injured, and Israel registered an official apology for their injury.

Also on Sunday, IAF helicopters fired missiles at metal workshops in the Jabaliya refugee camp east of Gaza City, which reportedly served the Palestinians in the preparation of rockets and mortars.

Earlier, two Kassam rockets landed in the fields of Kibbutz Sa'ad and Moshav Shuva in the western Negev, a short distance from the Gaza Strip. There were no injuries or damage from the attack. IDF tank fire knocked out the launcher of a third rocket before it could be fired. IDF troops entered Palestinian-controlled territory and retrieved the rocket launchers, which were reportedly fitted with timing devices.

IDF may re-enter Palestinian cities as conflict escalates
Sunday's launch of Kassam-2 rockets at Israeli communities constituted a "very serious escalation," according to government spokesman Avi Pazner. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and other Israeli officials have repeatedly warned that the use of rockets would "change everything" and bring an extremely harsh Israeli response.

Security officials fear the Palestinians will attempt to fire additional Kassam rockets at Israeli targets, and said that Sunday's launching may have been a test run, both for the rocket's technological capabilities and to judge Israel's military response. Military sources said the rockets fired from Gaza might have been intended for the cities of Sderot and Netivot. Army Radio reported that the Palestinians might have been targeting Sharon's Sycamore Ranch in the Negev, where Sunday's security cabinet session took place.

Military sources believe that the Palestinians already have Kassam-2 rockets stockpiled in the West Bank city of Tulkarm, and possibly in Kalkilya, Bethlehem and Ramallah as well, Israel Radio reported. Last Wednesday, an IDF unit intercepted a truck transporting eight Kassam-2 rockets, warheads, and launchers on the outskirts of Nablus. Military sources believe that the Palestinians will fire the rockets from locations in Judea and Samaria in response to a wide-ranging IDF action, or after Israel launches another targeted killing of terrorist leaders.

IDF forces were reportedly girding for possible entry into Palestinian territories and cities to launch "search and destroy" missions against Kassam-2 rocket infrastructure, according to media reports. Israel's military actions against the Palestinians are not expected to be "irreversible," the reports added.

Sharon is reportedly constrained by an American caution not to destabilize the region by taking steps that would constitute a dramatic escalation, as the United States prepares a new stage in its war against terrorism, widely believed to be a planned strike against Iraq.

A senior IDF officer told Maariv that it was essential for Israel to response harshly to Sunday's firing of Kassam rockets. "If our response is not severe, the Hamas will understand the message and continue its launches," he said.

Internal Security Minister Uzi Landau told Army Radio, in response to the Beer Sheva shooting attack and the Kassam rocket launches, that Israel must achieve a military victory over the Palestinian Authority. Israel's actions should include ground operations, as well as air strikes, he said.

Finance Minister Silvan Shalom said that despite the Kassam rocket attack, Israel would not radically change its relationship with the PA. Shalom warned that as long as PA Chairman Yasser Arafat remained in the region, Palestinian terror attacks would continue.

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